Aolai Country, on the southwest border, at the first bend of the river.

Between the mountains is a river valley, and on both sides of the river valley are mountains.

The sky here is always blue, a gorgeous blue, a blue that makes people feel comfortable.

The village is located in a river valley, and the country road winds through a barley field.

The soil here is fertile and the climate is pleasant, with only spring and autumn.

Duan Xu started a new life in Damai Field.

Village health workers come to your home as soon as possible just to conduct health check-ups for returning tourists.

"I don't need to. I pay for physical examinations at my own expense every year in Chunshen."

"Hey, you're from a big city, but you look down on the free ones in the countryside?"

"If we do, there will be no free medical insurance in rural areas." My father interjected.

"I'm afraid of having blood taken."

"Young man, what are you afraid of? Cover your face with a hat and hold his arm."

The health workers collected blood neatly and registered all health information, successfully completing the task of protecting the health of the villagers.

Relatives, friends, and neighbors came over one after another to talk about family issues.

My cousin came home to visit Duan Xu.

After greetings, my cousin asked:

"What are your plans for the future?"

"I haven't thought about it yet. I'll do some odd jobs first. If the situation is good, I will move to the city and continue making handicrafts."

"I think it's better for you to get a construction engineer certificate and apply for my engineering team's name."

"I'm afraid I can't do this. I haven't studied architecture."

"It doesn't matter. You can take the test with only two years of work experience. If you are educated, you will definitely be able to pass. You can take the test with a college diploma."

"Let me understand the situation first."

"I took on a few big jobs this year, including building roads in the northwest of Shambhala and digging caves. Those are big projects and we don't have the qualifications to do them. If you have the qualifications, we can do such big jobs together.

.”

Naturally, my mother supports my cousin. My father has been a carpenter all his life. Although his income is good, he also hopes that his son will have a better future.

Duan Xu had mixed feelings in his heart. They grew up together. Duan Xu studied well, but his aunt talked about someone else's child, so his cousin was beaten a lot.

Now I have to work for him, and I don't like the job at all.

To be precise, artists dislike everything called work. Artists think so.

"Let me think about it."

"Okay, think about it and let me know at any time. Brother, it's easy to do things."

Duan Xu really didn't know how to refuse, so he delayed it for a while.

It is more realistic to live humiliated than to die bravely.

It's not bad to leave yourself a way out.

…

Duan Xu plans to go into the mountains to find some special and artistic wood.

My father refused to let me go. I heard that the villagers saw many airplanes, a battle broke out in the back mountain, and several fireballs fell from the sky, which was very dangerous.

Duan Xu didn't care and insisted on going.

In the early morning, the sun shines down the river valley into the barley fields, and it is so warm that everyone just wants to grab a stool and sit in front of the house to bask in the sun.

Duan Xu walked through a farmland. The crops were just beginning to grow, half as high as calves, and everything looked green.

He came to the foot of a bare mountain, a karst mountain.

There used to be a quarry here, but it was later abandoned and overgrown with weeds.

Today the quarry came to life again. Duan Xu was curious and turned in and took a look.

Next to the entrance, there were piles of garbage and various kinds of excrement, which gave off a disgusting smell, and swarms of flies were flying around in front of the eyes.

A dozen temporary shacks were set up in the open space, and smoke came from the gaps in the wooden boards.

Three children were playing in front of the shack, with bare feet, dark skin and sunken eyes.

That's right, people like this are not local, most of them come from Indochina and come here to make a living.

When they saw someone coming in, the children stopped playing and looked at the incoming person alertly. They looked straight with white eyes and black pupils, as if they had never seen an outsider before, with a hint of fear mixed with curiosity.

The notice at the entrance of the village reminded Duan Xu that any stowaways should be reported to the government immediately.

A woman walked out of the house. She was short and slender, holding a cooking shovel in her hand. She stood at the door and looked at the stranger with extremely unfriendly eyes, just like a herd of cattle looking at a lion.

Duan Xu waved his hand and said:

"Sorry to bother you, I took the wrong route."

The woman did not answer. She held the shovel and remained motionless, staring at the strange man. If he made any strange move, she would risk her life to protect everything she owned.

He was startled, but quickly regained his composure. It must be that the other party did not understand his language, and if he showed any dangerous behavior at this time, the consequences would be very serious.

Duan Xu smiled knowingly at the other party, clasped his hands together, and bowed slightly. The woman at the door also bowed deeply to Duan Xu.

Duan Xu turned around and strode away. He wanted to know if the woman was going back, but he must not look back at this time. This might lead to suspicion and trouble.

He took out his cell phone. The quarry was surrounded by mountains on three sides and there was no signal, so he put it back in his pocket.

He was very troubled. If he reported these stowaways to the government and entered the isolation point, they might be able to have food and clothing without worries and have the possibility of returning home in the future.

However, the child's eyes were unforgettable, simple and filled with uneasiness, which deeply hurt Duan Xu. He made up his mind not to disturb their lives anymore.

After climbing over this mountain, there is a secondary virgin forest in the valley behind, where a wide variety of trees grow. The materials you want can be found here.

Following the footsteps of our predecessors and searching for the treasure of our dreams in the forest, we will gain a lot.

There was a dark figure in the grass ahead. Duan Xu was curious, holding a woodcutter in his hand, splitting a path and walked over.

Duan Xu was startled. It turned out to be a human being, lying there motionless.

The man was lying on his side in the grass, with some hay under him and a cloth bag beside him.

The chest is shrinking softly and regularly, and the facial skin retains a little blood color. He is alive.

Duan Xu was very scared and did not dare to come close. He shouted loudly, "Hey, friend, how are you? Wake up."

There was no movement, and a while passed.

The man's eyelids trembled a few times, and his eyes were rolling. He opened his eyes and cracked them slightly.

Seeing someone in front of him, he retracted his legs and tried to stand up, but couldn't.

He held his hands in front of his chest, his expression particularly nervous.

"Hi, how are you, friend. I am a human, not a ghost." Duan Xu said while waving his hand to him.

The man didn't answer. Duan Xu didn't know whether he was unable to answer or didn't understand, but the man's expression was still frightened.

Duan Xu took out the kettle, walked over, less than two meters away from him, stopped, unscrewed the lid, and reached out to hand the kettle over.

The man was confused for a while, then looked at Duan Xu, stretched out his hand, reached for the kettle, put it gently to his mouth, took a sip, his throat moved a few times, and after a while, took another sip.

After handing the kettle back, the man slowly sat up and gave Duan Xu a thumbs up.

Duan Xu gave him a few more biscuits and an orange. After eating, he looked much better. Only then could he see his face clearly. He had clear lines, fair skin, and no stubble. His appearance was very similar to that of his native countrymen, but

no.

Duan Xu gestured to send him home, but the man kept shaking his head and waved at Duan Xu with the back of his hand, signaling for him to leave.

His behavior was a bit strange. Duan Xu turned around and walked a few steps, thinking as he walked, he must be injured, but he didn't want anyone to know for fear of being deported. If he walked away, he would probably die here.

Finally, it was decided to at least send him back to the quarry anyway.

After some communication in sign language, the man fully realized that Duan Xu had no ill intentions and no longer refused his help.

His calf was injured and he had difficulty moving. Duan Xu cut two forked branches and made a pair of crutches.

There are no signals or roads in the mountains, so you have to rely on two legs to get out.

Now, two people only have three normal legs, which is destined to be a difficult journey.

Duan Xu supported him and moved slowly down the mountain.


Chapter completed!